American Express National Bank Review

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4.0NerdWallet rating

Where American Express shines:

Excellent interest rates

No monthly fees or minimum balance requirements

Where American Express falls short:

No checking account option

Checks need to be mailed in to be deposited

No mobile apps, chat or Twitter support

Where American Express shines:

Excellent interest rates

No monthly fees or minimum balance requirements

Where American Express falls short:

No checking account option

Checks must be mailed in to be deposited

No mobile apps, chat or Twitter support

Where American Express shines:

Excellent interest rates

No monthly fees or minimum balance requirements

Where American Express falls short:

No checking account option

Checks must be mailed in to be deposited

No mobile apps, chat or Twitter support

The bottom line

American Express National Bank provides savings accounts and certificates of deposit with highly competitive annual percentage yields. You’ll find no fees, but the FDIC-insured bank doesn’t offer a checking account option or ATM card. That means you’ll want to use this account in addition to having a separate checking account at a different bank. Checks and cash will be difficult to deposit.

Best if: You’re looking for a free high-yield savings account to house your extra money, at a bank separate from your checking account.

Read on for details on AmEx’s savings account, CDs, customer service and more.

Savings: 5.0/5.0

The upsides:

High rate: At 1.90% annual percentage yield (as of 8/22/19), American Express offers one of the highest interest rates on savings among competitors. (See which banks offer the highest rates on our list of best high-yield online savings accounts.)

No fees, no minimum balances: You won’t have to worry about monthly fees, making a minimum opening deposit or maintaining a certain balance in your account.

The downsides:

No mobile check deposit: American Express reserves its mobile apps for credit card customers, so savings customers are out of luck. To fund your account you will either have to link your current bank account or mail a check to the office in Salt Lake City.

Limited transactions: Like any regular savings account, six transactions out of the account is the monthly limit because of Regulation D. (Wait — what’s Regulation D?) It’s possible to exceed that by requesting an official check from the bank, but if you withdraw frequently, check out our list of favorite checking accounts.

Certificates of deposit: 5.0/5.0

The upsides:

High rates: You’ll get very competitive CD rates for a variety of terms at American Express, the highest capping out at 2.15% APY (as of 9/12/19) for a 60-month term. (To see high rates at other banks, check out our list of this month’s best CD rates.)

No minimum opening deposit: Banks typically require some deposit amount, whether hundreds or even thousands of dollars, to open a certificate of deposit, but that’s not the case at American Express.

bank experience: 3.0/5.0

First, the upsides:

Clear and informative website: Rates and fees are clearly displayed, and a robust FAQ section answers many questions that you’ll likely have about the account.

Customer support available 24/7: If you need to talk to someone, support is available around the clock via phone.

But there are downsides:

No mobile apps for savings or CD customers: This might be a deal-breaker if you like checking your balances and setting up transfers on your phone.

Only phone support: As an online bank, American Express National Bank doesn’t have any branches. It doesn’t have chat support, which many banks offer, or Twitter support, either.

» Ready to take the next step? High rates and no fees make American Express National Bank a good bank to keep on your list if you want to grow your savings. Keep in mind that the bank currently doesn’t offer any mobile apps or checking account options. Customer support, while available 24/7, is limited to phone calls.

About the author

Amber is a personal finance writer at NerdWallet. Her work has been featured by USA Today, The Christian Science Monitor and The Associated Press. She holds a bachelor's degree in comparative literature from UCLA.
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